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To my mind there is nothing better than a homemade Christmas Gift.
But I know there is a slight stigma for many people about DIY Christmas Gifts.
Some people think the gift receiver will judge the quality or will think the giver is cheap for not buying something store bought.
Frankly, if your friends and family are judging your gifts like that, should you really be rating their opinions?
My own judgements aside though, I totally get that when you are making a homemade Christmas Gift you want it to look amazing.
You want it to show how much you care of course, but is there a small part of you that also wants to prove a little point about how awesome a homemade DIY Christmas Gift can actually be?
If you want to take on the challenge of giving a homemade upcycled gift that doesn’t actually look homemade then check out this bumper list of ideas!
I’d love to hear your suggestions too!
DIY Christmas Gifts They won't know are Homemade!
A bumper list of fabulously homemade & upcycled gifts that your friends and family will be happy to recieve!
I love these geometric leather coasters from Sum of Their Stories.
And I love them even more for knowing that they are made out of the leather from an old sofa!
This is a knifty repurposing of an existing wooden bowl.
It's a niche gift for sure, but it would be perfect for the knitter or crochet enthusiast in your life!
This cute clutch purse made from an upcycled placemat is from Hello Sewing.
She has two options for how to make it - either sew or no-sew!
This is one of my tutorials. It's an easy jewellery making project involving fabric samples that usually go unused.
Make a pendant using a different combination of colours for all the lovely ladies on your list.
A thoughtful handmade gift idea that you can make personal with the recipient's favourite colours.
This is a fun refashioning style upcycle of some old mittens using leather, lace and other trimmings.
Give them some one of a kind mits to keep them warm this winter!
I made this as a birthday gift for my nephew out of fabric samples and Thomas the Tank Engine themed fabric off cuts that I bought from someone who had them leftover from their own sewing project.
I'm told he uses it most days!
This is one handmade gift they definitely won't know is handmade unless you tell them. A lovely pair of lace earrings using upcycled lace.
These can be made so personal as well if you use lace that has a family history. A super sweet gift idea.
This cute gift idea from Craftsy Hacks is great for giving them something practical and pretty at the same time.
These headbands are made from upcycled t-shirts.
These cute scrap fabric flowers can be turned into brooches or keychains or even added on to a headband or bag.
You see things like this that can be store bought all over the place so unless you tell them they won't immediately know you made it!
These name crayons were my go to gift for kids last year.
I used up all my kid's broken crayon bits and was able to give loads of personalised and colourful presents!
How to Make a Flax Seed Heating Bag out of the Leftovers from Cutoff Jeans
Heating pads and bags make great gifts for anyone in your life who is subject to aches and pains. And what better way to make that gift more personal than making it yourself out of old jeans!
If you want to make more fun gifts out of old jeans, check out our massive list of denim upycycling ideas here!
This fun project will get you upcycling and reusing your old clothing - namely a denim skirt - to make a large and roomy bag. Who doesn't want another bag for Christmas?
Scratch and Stitch had a similar idea as the one above with their tote bag from a mini skirt. Her version is wool, bright purple and arguably more of an everyday size! Take your pick and get making!
If you want to make a Tote Bag but you don't have a skirt to upcycle try our bumper list of DIY Upcycled Tote Bag Ideas. You'll be sure to find something to make there!
This kid's apron was made as a gift to my son and he uses it frequently to offer me 'dinner' from his play kitchen. Usually a fun imaginary concoction of tomato and banana!
This is one of the many projects I made out of two of my husband's old shirts (see below for more).
Another fun gift idea to make for kids is this bedside pocket organiser. I made these after making my denim quilt because I had so many leftover pockets!
You can use it to store a little toy, book, spill proof water cup or even a tooth for the tooth fairy!
There are quite a few gift ideas in my post from earlier this year about the many projects I was able to make using two of my husband's old shirts.
Some of the projects included: a kid's teddy bear, zipper pouches, book marks, key chains, jewellery, a boho wall hanging and a kid's apron (see above).
Check out the full post for lots of gift giving inspiration.
Lastly I want to point you to this popular post of ours which is all about gifts you can make for kids out of scrap fabric.
If you haven't found your perfect gift in the suggestions above and you know how to sew - check this list out and you'll be sure to find something!
I hope you’ve found some gift giving inspiration from this list and I’d love to know what gifts you actually end up making.
If you liked this post, don’t forget to Pin it for later!
More DIY Christmas GIFT IDEAS
For more upcycled gift ideas see these posts too:
- 10 DIY Personalised Gifts You Can Make From Your Upcycled Stuff!
- 14 Ways to Upcycle Fabric Scraps as Gifts for Kids
- The Ultimate Guide to Upcycled Gifts on Etsy
Upcycled Christmas Gift Wrapping Ideas
And don’t forget to go upcycled for the wrapping and gift tags as well! See the posts below for more:
- The Upcycler’s Guide to Gift Wrapping
- DIY Christmas Gift Tags from Cardboard & Scrap Fabric
- 6 Ways to Reuse Packaging as Upcycled Gift Wrap
- How to Reuse Christmas Cards as Gift Tags
- How to make Kraft Tags from Upcycled Cardboard
If you are into sewing and you want some fun scrap fabric gift ideas check out our sister site, Scrap Fabric Love.
Julie says
So many lovely ideas. Thanks for including my geometric coasters, it’s an honour to be with so many other great gift ideas.